Cylinder door construction



June 7, 1938. c, wAREAM 2,120,167

CYLINDER DOOR CON STRUCTION Filed Oct. 25, 1935 INVENTOR CHARLES E.WAREAM ATTORNEYS Patented June 7, 1938 UNITED STATES CYLINDER DOORCONSTRUCTION Charles E. Waream, Norwood, Ohio, assignor to The AmericanLaundry Machinery Company, Norwood, Ohio, a corporation of OhioApplication October 23, 1935, Serial No. 46,293

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a cylinder structure such as is found inwashing and dry cleaning machines and more particularly to improvementsin the construction of door closures for such cylinders.

Cylinders in machines of the type described are provided with one ormore side openings and circumferentially sliding doors for saidopenings. Necessarily these doors are guided during their slidingmovement and sufiicient play is allowed between the door and the guidesto permit the doors to slide easily. During rotation of the cylinder ina washing or dry cleaning operation the doors move about in the space inwhich they are confined resulting in Wearing of the parts andunnecessary noise. It is the purpose of the present invention to providemeans for holding the door in a predetermined position relative to thecylinder when it is closed.

My invention contemplates a novel arrangement of parts by which a dooris securely held against movement relative to a cylinder, theconstruction being so arranged that the retaining parts are cammed intosecuring position by the final movement of the door into closedposition.

My invention also provides means for camming the door into its finalclosed position by the latching means which retains the door closed andthe utilization of this camming action to secure another portion of thedoor in fixed position relative to the cylinder.

Other novel features of my invention will appear from the accompanyingdescription and the drawing and the essential features will besummarized in the claims.

In the drawing Fig. 1 is a fragmental view of a cylinder having acircumferentially slidable door in closed position and the parts beingequipped with my invention; Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views alongsimilarly numbered lines of Fig. 1; while Fig. 4 is a fragmental view ofthe cylinder of Fig. 1 showing the door in partially opened position.

The drawing shows a cylinder l having a door opening II at one sidethereof and a circumferentially slidable door l2 for closing saidopening. Guide members I3 and M embrace the curved ends of the door andguide the same during its circumferential movement. The bottom edge ofthe door in its closed position enters a channel formed by a cross barl5 and a plate l6 which are secured together and secured to thecylinder. It will be noted that the door in closed position as seen inFig. 3 does not engage the bottom of the channel but is held in positionby other means to be described.

Latching means is provided for holding the door closed and in the formshown this comprises latch bolts I1 and I8 locatednear the bottom edgeof the door and slidable endwise into engagement with keepers l9 and onthe cylinder. The bolts are biased in their latching position by springs2| and are connected by rods 22 with a retracting handle 23 pivotallymounted on the door at 24. The rods 22 enter suitable openings in acollar 25 rigid with the shank of the handle so that a movement of thehandle outwardly causes a partial rotation of the collar 25 andsimultaneous retraction of the bolts I1 and I8. It will be noted thatthe coacting surfaces of the latch bolts and their keepers are wedgeshape so that as the bolts enter the keepers they cam the door into itsclosed position. The latch bolts and the actuating handle therefor maybe set in suitable recesses in the door so as to present an unobstructedouter surface on the door. It will be noted that the door I2 is spacedfrom the cylinder Ill and this space is enclosed on the curved edges ofthe doors by the guides and on the bottom longitudinal edge of the doorby the channel construction formed by the members l5 and I6.

Along the upper longitudinal edge of the door is provided means forfirmly securing the door in position when closed and this means is alsoarranged to seal the space between the door and the cylinder along theupper edge of the door when the same is closed. The arrangement showncomprises a substantially continuous strip 26 secured to the cylinder l0and substantially coextensive with the upper edge of the doorbetween'the guides. Superimposed on this strip are a plurality ofcontiguous strips of which three are shown, 21a, 21b and 210. The strips26 and 21 substantially close the space between the upper edge of thedoor l2 and the cylinder II] (as most clearly seen in Fig. 3) when thedoor is closed. The strip portions 210, and 210 are secured to thecylinder. The strip portion 21b is secured to the door. The contiguousfaces between the inner ends of the strips 211 and 210 and the outerends of the strip 21b are bevelled in two planes as shown at 28 and 29.One out forms a wedge shaped opening longitudinal of the cyl- 50 inderbetween the faces 28 and 29 on the strips 21a and 210 and thecomplementary faces on strip 211) are also of wedge shape so as to enterand fill the wedge shape opening between the strips 21a and 210 as thedoor moves into closed same in a predetermined position radially of thecylinder.

Means is provided for guiding the strip 21?) into suitable positionbetween the end strips as the door approaches closed position and-in theform shown the continuous strip 26 is milled away between the points 28and 219 as best seenat 30- in Fig. 3 so that strip 26 will not interferewith.

the strip portion 212) as the door closes. The camming action of thelatching means as. the bolts engage their keepers serves to apply. thewedge strip Zlb firmly into place between the end strips 21a and 210.

The construction is such that the door 12 rides upon the strips 21aand-21c as the door is opened (see Fig. 4) and this holds the strip 211)clear of.

the cylinder shell so that the door slides freely in case there are anyprotrusions on the cylinder. sheets such as is caused by theembossedtype of cylinder perforations.

It will be understood that the strip 21b might be secured to thecylinder while the two strips 27a and 270 might be securecl'to the doorwith the wedge surfaces at the contacting ends of the two outer stripswith the intermediate strip sloped in the opposite direction from thatshown in the drawing. This is an obvious interchange of parts.

The mechanism at 3| biaseshandle 23 to its nested position. Theconstruction at this point is clearly shown in Patent No. 1,964,114,granted June 26, 1934, to F. A. Gerlach.

What I claimis:

1. In a machine of the class described and comprising a cylinder memberhaving a side opening and a circumferentially'slidable door membertherefor spaced from said cylinder member and having guides on saidcylinder member embracing the curved edges of saiddoor member; means forpreventing movement of said door member relative to said cylinder memberwhen said door member is closed including three sealing strips alignedadjacent one of the longitudinally extending edges of said door memberand coextensive therewith when said door member is closed, said stripsbeing positioned in said space between said members, the end two of saidstrips being secured to said cylinder, the central strip being securedto said door, said strips having coacting inclined surfaces where saidend strips engage said. central strip, said surfaces diverging outwardlyin a direction circumferentially of said cylinder away from said dooropening, and said surfaces also diverging as they extend inwardly towardthe axis of said cylinder, whereby said surfaces are adapted tosealingly engage and position said door longitudinally and radially ofsaid. cylinder as said door closes.

2. In a machine of the class described and comprising a cylinder havinga side opening and an, arcuately bent sheet forming a circumferentiallyslidable door therefor, means positioned along the trailing.- edgeof'the door for holding said door in apredetermined position on saidcylinder and spaced therefrom, said means including interfitting wedgeshape parts adapted to interengage when said door is closed, one of saidparts being rigid with said door and the other of said partsbeing rigidwith said cylinder, said parts lying between-said cylinder and saiddoor, said part rigid with said cylinder being of greater thickness thansaid part rigid with said door, and means for camming said door partradially outwardly into coacting position with said cylinder part assaid door is closed.

3. Cylinder: door construction comprising a cylinder having a sideopening, a circumferentially slidable door for closing said opening,guide means for receiving the leading edge of said.

door when closed, said guide means permitting additional movement ofsaid door in closing direction when said door is closed, coacting'wedgeshape parts on saiddoor and cylinder, the same parts diverging outwardlyin a direction circumferentially of said cylinder away from said'dooropening and also diverging as they extendin- Wardly toward the axis ofsaid cylinder so that said parts are adapted to approacheach other assaid door is moved into. closed position, and securing means for holdingsaid door'c1osed',whereby said door is heldagainst' movementlongitudinally, radially and circumferentially of said cylinder. CHARLESE. WAREAM.

